Public conference as part of the Search for a professor in Theoretical physics.

Summary: Chiral phononics is an emerging field that utilizes the angular momentum and chirality of lattice vibrations to manipulate the properties of quantum materials. This has led to intriguing discoveries including the generation of atomistic tesla-scale magnetic fields that promise unprecedented control of magnetic order. In this talk, I will provide an introduction to the field and then present our recent predictions of novel physical phenomena arising from light-induced phonon chirality and angular momentum. Specifically, I will show that phonomagnetic fields induce and switch magnetization, and that mirror-symmetry breaking phonons generate chirality on demand in achiral crystals. I will finish with an outlook of how the angular momentum and chirality of the crystal lattice itself may serve as fundamental degrees of freedom that can be utilized in future phononic devices.